Tokyo cops: GSDF member burned hole in woman’s skirt

Police accused a GSDF member of lighting a woman’s skirt on fire on an escalator in Ikebukuro

TOKYO (TR) – A man in the Ground Self-Defense Forces was arrested for burning a hole in the skirt of a woman who was standing in front of him on an escalator, the Asahi Shimbun reported on Wednesday (Aug. 24).

Shota Saito, 23, a sergeant second class of the GSDF garrison in Nerima Ward, was arrested on destruction of property charges for allegedly using a blowtorch to burn a two-centimeter hole in the skirt of a 24-year-old woman who was standing in front of him on an escalator in a shopping mall in the Nishi-Ikebukuro area of Toshima Ward at around 4:35 p.m. on Sept. 9, 2015.

Saito admitted to the charges after he was confronted by police on Friday at JR Ikebukuro Station after his profile matched the victim’s statement and security camera footage.

“I was curious what would happen if I lit a woman’s skirt on fire,” Saito told police.

Police are also investigating whether the case is related to another 40-year-old victim whose skirt was also burned an hour later at a nearby bookstore.